$1M Lightning Payment Tests Bitcoin’s Institutional Rails

Cointelegraph reports Institutional trading and lending desk Secure Digital Markets (SDM) said it sent a $1 million payment to cryptocurrency exchange Kraken over the Lightning Network on Jan. 28. SDM claimed in a statement shared with Cointelegraph that it is the largest publicly reported Lightning transaction to date and a proof‑of‑concept for seven‑figure transfers between regulated counterparties.

The payment cleared in 0.43 seconds and was routed via Voltage’s managed Lightning infrastructure, which provides node management, pre‑provisioned liquidity, and uptime guarantees aimed at exchanges and trading desks. Voltage CEO Graham Krizek called the transaction an 'important moment for Lightning and for institutional Bitcoin payments' and said the transfer highlighted its ability to meet enterprise requirements.

The transfer comes amid mixed Lightning metrics: public channel capacity fell from over 5,400 BTC in late 2023 to about 4,200 BTC by mid 2025, before rebounding to over 5,600 BTC by December.